1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for controlling network access of mobile devices. More particularly, the present invention relates to a method for providing a location-based control policy of a mobile device.
2. Description of the Related Art
Mobile terminals are developed to provide wireless communication between users. As technology has advanced, mobile terminals now provide many additional features beyond simple telephone conversation. For example, mobile terminals are now able to provide additional functions such as an alarm, a Short Messaging Service (SMS), a Multimedia Message Service (MMS), E-mail, games, remote control of short range communication, an image capturing function using a mounted digital camera, a multimedia function for providing audio and video content, a scheduling function, and many more. With the plurality of features now provided, a mobile terminal has effectively become a necessity of daily life.
FIG. 1 is a smartphone according to the related art. FIG. 2 is a tablet computer according to the related art. Mobile devices such as tablet computers and smartphones that include internet browsers as standard applications have become common enough that it is no longer unusual for a child to have such a device. Given the wide availability of 3rd Generation (3G) and Wireless Fidelity (WiFi) wireless network services, children may now use tablet computers and smartphones to access the internet from almost any location.
In the related art, there have been various software packages that could be installed on computers to monitor or control access to the internet generally, or to specific sites on the internet. For example, many parents install filters to prevent a computer from displaying pornography, drug use, violence, or other disturbing material. Such filters sometimes have options to apply different filters according to the user and time of day, or to specifically ban or allow access to particular web sites. At least one such filtering software package, NETNANNY MOBILE™, is available for parents to install on children's smartphones using the BLACKBERRY™, ANDROID™, SYMBIAN™, or WINDOWS MOBILE™ operating systems.
However, before now there has been no option to implement a control policy which takes into account a desire to configure the policy according to the user's location.
Accordingly, there is a need for an apparatus and method for providing a location-based control policy and validation for mobile devices.